Bat Out of Hell (Promised to the Demons #2) - Lidiya Foxglove Page 0,4

for hours, and now it's your turn. She has not been conscious yet, but we need someone to keep watch over her in case she wakes and change her treatment as needed."

"This sounds very serious."

"It is. I do think she'll pull through."

"She must. I haven't made it clear to her that I accept my destiny to wed her."

"It sounds like you are all trying to challenge each other for the title," the man said, giving me a wry half-smile. "Good luck with that."

"The fates have shown me my bride, and I have decided not to fight it anymore."

"Ah," Lord Cyrus said. "The fates, the fates. Whoever they are, they must find us very entertaining. Well, here we are..."

My rooms were just down the hall from Jenny's sickbed. The smell of medicinal herbs was pleasant, but concerning, and sunlight fell on her in a huge airy bed. I was shocked to see her looking so small and deathly pale, with a compress on her head.

"How could the swamp sickness have affected her this badly? Have you checked her for other ailments?"

"She was also bitten by a poisonous fish," said a female healer sitting at Jenny's bedside. She stood up and washed her hands in a basin as she spoke, then removed her apron. "But...I think the real trouble is that she is a very Ethereal personality. Bevan told me her warlock was actually initiated into Sinistral, but her character remained resolutely Ethereal, and since he never asked her to do magic, she never had to bend her nature to his will. Thus, she is susceptible to a very bad case of Sinistral illnesses. Cyrus, are you taking over as healer on duty?"

Cyrus nodded. "I don't have anything better to do. Get some rest."

I went to Jenny's side. A very sickening feeling was descending on me like a storm cloud. I had never felt anything like it, as if my life had become entwined with hers, and if she died, I would have a difficult time moving on from it. I swallowed.

"Is there anything I can do, since this illness came from my own lands?"

"Well," Cyrus said, appraising me with narrowed eyes. "Far be it from me to involve myself in your affairs, but it sounds like you generated a considerable amount of chaos in her life just before this happened."

"I am a demon," I said. "And much like any ruler of a domain, I have responsibilities. I had to demonstrate to my servants that they serve at my pleasure."

"And it seems like her response was to demonstrate to you that it might just kill her," Cyrus shrugged. "You might have to decide if it's worth it to you to apologize.” He turned to a work table with herbs and small bottles. I took ahold of her small hand, and she felt even more small and fragile than I imagined. Even in human form, she hardly seemed more substantial than a small animal. My claws could have gashed her even accidentally.

Her skin burned with the fever. Her breathing was strained. Her death was not at hand, but it lurked closer than I liked.

I didn't believe that an apology would cure swamp sickness, but I wondered if I owed her one anyway.

If I became the man you wanted me to be, I would never be able to return home.

That thought should have been enough to scare me into resisting her, but instead I found myself gazing at her delicate face, far too sweet and unassuming for a demon's bride. The smattering of freckles on her nose stood out even more in her illness. Her hand remained so limp in mine that I realized I was holding my breath, waiting for each slow breath of her own.

"The best thing you can do for her is simply to be here for her,” Lord Cyrus said. “Every hour, we're changing the cool cloth on her head. It's infused with a particular blend of magic that helps with the fever and also provides her with nutrients while she's in the coma. Occasionally the spell causes the subject to wet the bed, so check the sheets now and then. The queen has told me to trust you alone with her, but she says that you will be judged for anything you might do to her. I'm sure you'll be a gentleman..." It seemed a casual threat.

"I want her to be entirely aware of it the first time I touch her," I said. "So you don't need to worry